Council tenants will be hit with a whopping 267 per cent increase in garden maintenance fees for 2025/26.
The £330.20 rise in the annual Garden Maintenance Scheme fee from April was narrowly voted through by councillors this week.
The increase – opposed by Conservative and Independent councillors on the Housing and Social Wellbeing Committee – was approved as part of the financial plan for Perth and Kinross Council’s Housing Revenue Account (HRA).
A report – put before councillors at the meeting on Wednesday, January 22 – revealed the cost of running the Garden Maintenance Scheme had “increased significantly”. Officers recommended the annual fee increase from £123.76 to £453.96 and for the introduction of an additional £46.80 annual charge for hedge cutting.
Officers told councillors “all current tenants receiving this service have been advised of the proposed increase in charges, along with information on the support available to them”.
It is also understood the scheme will be made available to all tenants rather than just the more vulnerable tenants.
Convener Tom McEwan said: “One advantage of this new service is that it won’t be restricted – because it’s no longer subsidised – it will be open to all 8000 tenants within our HRA, they will have access to this service; it won’t just be restricted to the over 65s and those on other benefits.”
Moving the plan for approval, the Blairgowrie and Glens SNP councillor said: “For several years our Garden Maintenance Scheme has been subsidised by the council. I think this has been at a time when our other demands and pressures were less than they now are.
“I think the pressures on our HRA to subsidise a non-statutory service has gone. I think it is unfortunate that at that time and recommissioning the charges have increased but not surprising.
“I understand this is a significant rise and for some people this may be an intolerable rise. I am confident though that our Housing team will support the 525 residents that are currently on the scheme; that they will identify those in need and find individual solutions for those individual people so it doesn’t become a burden so they don’t lose this service.”
He said councillors would have a chance to look at the impact of the increase, in a year’s time, when the committee sets the financial plan for the following year’s Housing Revenue Account and “possibly take steps in a different direction if need be”.
However, Conservative councillor Bob Brawn felt the increase was too steep at a time when many of these same residents have lost their Winter Fuel Payment and face a proposed 10 per cent rise in council tax. He proposed an amendment to split the £330.20 increase over two years.
Eight SNP and Liberal Democrat councillors voted to support the SNP motion, with seven Conservative and Independent councillors supporting Cllr Brawn’s amendment to “ease the pain” and spread the increased costs over two years.
Following the meeting, Cllr Brawn said: “Garden maintenance is a non-landlord function offered to pensioners and those with disability and has been subsidy-operated for some time from the rental income of all council tenants. That is unfair to other tenants and we now need to move to a full cost recovery scheme. Effectively, this will mean a rise of the annual charge by £330.
“Given current users are pensioners and those with disability, and considering the coming rise in Council Tax, possibly 10 per cent and the loss of Winter Fuel Payments, the Scottish Conservative group believed it should be phased in over two years.
“Consequently, our amendment proposed a rise of £165 for the coming financial year and £165 for the year 2026/27. Although supported by the Independent members, this failed eight votes to seven.”
A rent increase of six per cent was also agreed by councillors as part of this financial plan for the Housing Revenue Account. The approved increase will see a PKC tenant’s average weekly rent increase to £84.52 from April 7, 2025.